


A Loss of Control

by HastaLux



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015), Star Wars Episode VIII: The Last Jedi, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Assassination Attempt(s), Cameo Phasma, Consent is an afterthought, Dubious Consent, Enemies to Lovers, Explicit Sexual Content, Hux Didn't Sign Up for This, Inappropriate Use of the Force, Kylo Maybe Seduces Himself, Kylo Might Get It Together By The End, Kylo Ren Has Issues, M/M, Minor Violence, Phasma Ships It, Some Plot, Using Hux, Weaponized Nudity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-09
Updated: 2018-01-31
Packaged: 2019-03-02 15:45:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,937
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13321383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HastaLux/pseuds/HastaLux
Summary: Occurring following the events of Last Jedi:Kylo Ren decides it would be fun to use the Force to make Armitage Hux a little less inhibited, seeing as the general might have a little hidden "thing" for him. He forgot Armitage also uses his self-control to keep himself from trying to kill Ren.Oops?





	1. A Loss of Control

**Author's Note:**

> Contains Spoilers for Last Jedi! 
> 
> This is my first fanfic. I don't have a beta reader. Eep. Hi? I hope you like this.
> 
> It should also be noted that Kylo is maybe not the most trustworthy narrator when it comes to what Hux is thinking. Or the best at trying to be nice to a partner. Or a good person (though he would disagree.)

Three door consoles, one elevator panel, and a section of floor that looked like an earthquake had struck it. This was the damage total following Kylo’s return to his ship. Following his _failure_.

The thought still made him burn. Some officer had suggested see a medical droid specially programmed for massage and the precise placement of thin needles. A time to relax. Kylo had almost tossed the officer through a wall before he took in the look on his face. The same expression on all the faces all staring at him from the bridge. Fear. 

So he stowed his anger, nodded, and gave them orders to continue tracking that awful flying heap his father had once called a ship and marched off to let the droid work on him in silence. It wasn’t really that relaxing, but it did force them all to leave him alone. Just… alone. That’s where he wanted to be. Letting the force churn through him as he tried fruitlessly to find that connection with Rey, or anything that told him where she was. She would see it his way, eventually. Her strength only proved that to him. The power they could wield, it would reshape the whole of the galaxy. She wouldn’t love him, which suited him perfectly well. Attachments- feelings- in their rule would only lead to resentment. To hate. To betrayal. He’d had quite enough of betrayal. He only needed her in his control, just for a bit, just until she could really _see_ …

The door slid open and he sighed from the hole in the table which held his face. Unless it was a deeply dire emergency there was only one person who had the spine to interrupt him here. “General Hux.”

“Re- Supreme Leader. We’ve had reports.”

Kylo lifted a hand and dismissed the droid from the room. He sighed and rolled onto his side, facing Hux in only a scrap of towel. Hux pursed his lips. Kylo smiled to himself. _Good. Let him be uncomfortable._ Hux was hardly the only man in the order with the ambition to sit the throne Kylo had now found himself in. It was likely driving him mad that Kylo had secured it. _And not even of my own doing, for all he knows._ “The Falcon?”

“Yes. Fifteen sightings, across twelve systems.”

“And?”

“None credible.” Kylo felt the omission. Other officers would finish that sentence with “Supreme Leader,” or perhaps a “sir.” Hux was testing. Subtle, but testing. Kylo ran his tongue over his teeth. Very well. He could play this game. He rolled off the table and let the towel fall to the floor, all very nonchalantly. He knew he was impressive. That had been clear any time he other other knights had showered in the common barracks. Snoke had told them it was a matter of will. The jedi- the old, weak order that they were- kept their minds chaste, indoctrinated their children to never think of sex. But older boys, in particular, boys hitting puberty with the Force who had aims beyond study and quiet contemplation- consciously or no, they guided themselves to be _bigger_. 

He didn’t bother looking at Hux as he walked over to a side table and poured a cup of water. “So you’ve learned nothing?”

“Not regarding the resistance.” That omission again. Kylo was going to have to do something about that.

“Then I assume you have a better reason for coming in here than to tell me you can’t do your job.” 

Hux bristled, but he still bore the marks Kylo had left on his neck and a cautious posture in his shoulder where he hit the wall of the cruiser. He wasn’t going to mouth off overtly. “The fleet admirals would like a meeting. To ensure the proper line of succession is adhered to.”

“The proper line of succession.”

“For Supreme Leader.” 

Kylo felt the anger working its way inside him once more. He stilled it, let it pool within him like fuel. Throwing Hux into a wall wasn’t going to accomplish much, pleasant as it might feel. Instead he sighed and set down the cup, stepping slowly closer to Hux, letting the little tendrils of the Force extend and extend into the general’s mind. What was there? Fear, certainly. Kylo felt a little pleasure at that. “And did you mention that the role had been filled?”

Hux straightened the closer Kylo came. It seemed he thought posture could save him from all ills. “In terms of the Force- yes, certainly, all agree you are by far best suited to deal with all matters. But in terms of leading the First Order…”

There it was, the whiff of ambition. It overpowered the fear easily. Interesting. “They have another candidate in mind?”

“They… have some under consideration.” _They indeed. Cover your own tracks there, Armitage._

Kylo smiled. It wasn’t kind. “Anyone I might know?” He let the Force flow out of him. A light skim over the general’s surface thoughts. Worry about the Falcon, fine. Concerns about Rey. Understandable. Fear. A lack of it would be surprising. Ambition, disdain, that was all typical. There was something else, however, something the general was working a bit harder to keep contained…

“If you’ve been paying attention in strategy meetings, yes, I imagine you would know them.” Kylo met Hux’s eyes evenly. _Sass? That was an error, general._ Kylo casually locked the door to the room with a light flick of his fingers. Hux heard the click, his eyes darted that way. The fear the general was trying so valiantly to keep down- and Kylo did have to give him credit, Armitage wore a good mask- was palpable at every point of his continued awareness of Hux’s mental state. Kylo could practically taste it.

“Fairly well, I should guess.” Kylo came within inches of the general, who was making a fairly pointed effort not to look down. He reached with the force, placing his hands against the wall on either side of Hux’s head, shifting his gentle skimming over the general’s mind more in the direction of a proper, painful probe.. “I have a feeling one of them is someone who should really know better than to try it, do I have that right?” He could rip into Hux here, unveil every last one of his secrets, but some of what he could easily sense- the indication that he was not a tactician, that he was a better weapon than a leader- he wouldn’t say it aloud, but the generals were right. Which is why he needed them to accept him. They could lead their parts so long as they respected his word was law. Threats would only get him so far when half of them could just run off with their ships, or if the next time he went out in his own fighter Hux ordered the Finalizer to leave him and go to hyperdrive. 

A little fear, on the other hand, could work wonders. 

Hux quivered, though he tried to hide it with a rigid back. It was annoying Kylo, this other… feeling he got from the general. Something he was really working to hide. A more direct treason? That would be a pity. The easiest way to work on a prisoner, if they didn’t give into fear, was to get them off balance. So, to that end…

Kylo lifted one hand and Force-held Hux to the wall by his throat. Not tightly- he needed the man to be able to speak- but firm enough to remind him what it would feel like if Kylo did decide to close his fist over it. “General Hux.”

Ah, there it was. Armitage with a blaster, and Kylo on the floor. The thought gave Hux comfort. It almost made Kylo laugh. The idea that the general, thinking Kylo dead, would decide to shoot the corpse just to be sure… well, that was a pleasant feeling of power. He would not need to kill Hux for that. 

Instead, he flicked his spare hand and popped the button on Hux’s immaculately ironed trousers. 

Hux’s face betrayed his confusion. “Er... Supreme Leader...”

“It seems to me, Armitage,” Kylo almost growled the name, “That you are looking for a little measuring competition. A bit childish for someone passing himself off as a general, but I’ll indulge you all the same.” Kylo felt the conflict- the initial relief that Ren didn’t intend to immediately kill him, a fair degree of anxiety over having his manhood in the palm of someone “prone to breaking walls”, then relief again that either way the door was locked and he wouldn’t be made to look a fool in front of his officers. 

Well, he would have to indulge the part of that he found most amusing. He stepped closer and slid his hand into Hux’s trousers. The general was doing a fine job of attempting to keep himself aloof. Kylo had a momentarily flicker of respect for whoever had trained Hux to resist interrogation. Except this was not interrogation, and Hux was off his footing. 

He pulled Hux’s manhood free from his pants rather roughly and heard the man suppress the urge to cry out. “Let’s see, shall we?” He stared at Hux pointedly until the other man looked down, then he looked down as well. He was correct, of course. Far larger than his ginger general. But the general was not terribly well off, as far as average human males were concerned. He had likely been envied in a barracks or two against the terrible… mediocrity… common to most. 

But he didn’t have the Force to help him along. “So. I think we can establish quite firmly that I am the superior, hm? No matter what games you might be playing, Hux, you will end up beneath me.” He squeezed a bit as he said it, just to drive the point home. 

Kylo had retracted a bit from keeping tab’s on Hux’s mind now that he knew about the blaster, but something flittered across his senses. Something that matched what he had felt before, the hidden thing he _thought_ was Hux’s little effort at treason. Something… feral? That was unlike Armitage. 

He probed deeper, ignoring Hux’s grunts as his efforts to resist made the process more painful the deeper Kylo had to dig. There were thoughts circling the hidden part, random snippets of a restless mind- no. Not random at all. _Snow. Hoth. Duty task lisk. Janitorial reports. Hutts._ Kylo tilted his head and slowly looked down again at Hux’s exposed member. There it was. Just a twitch. Kylo ought to give Hux’s self-control more credit. That was the hardest he’d ever seen someone work to _not_ get an erection. 

So this evasive little secret in Hux’s mind was… arousal. Interesting. The idea of getting Hux to loosen up a bit amused him. The man was excessively tightly wound and, besides, how often had he accused Kylo of being reckless? Of being too rash?

It was time to turn the tables on that. Kylo pressed on the point, not probing, this time, no. _Suggesting._ Flinging that door open as wide as it would go with a simple command. Let go. He was expecting something amusing, like Hux immediating cumming and mussing up his pants, something Ren could hold over him if he needed to and have a good laugh about. He could use a laugh.

That isn’t what happened. 

Hux shoved him. Hard. Kylo almost instinctively shoved him away with the Force but Armitage had managed to get hold of both his wrists in the process. He was both faster and stronger than Kylo had expected. “General,” he started warningly, “I don’t think you want to-”

There was a quick impact against the back of his legs and they went out from under him. Which is how Kylo ended up flat on his back on the massage table, with Hux pinning his arms over his head and _growling_ at him. Usually his anger helped direct his actions, let him summon the Force to fix whatever was wrong- or break something because he wanted to- but he was so bewildered that the only thing the Force was giving him was the fierce flurry of passion flowing unbridled from Hux.

It wasn’t just arousal, however. That was dominant, but it was as if Kylo had broken the seal on Armitage’s impulse control. And whatever else he might be interested in, Hux also definitely had considered killing him. Repeatedly. 

Oops.

“Armitage. Look at me. I’m going to try not to hurt you but I have to fix-” Armitage leaned down, licking his way up Ren’s exposed chest, and bit Kylo hard on the neck. Hard enough that Kylo wasn’t entirely certain whether the gesture was lustful or murderous. Kylo groaned through clenched teeth. 

He wrapped his legs around Hux’s waist, making brief note that Hux’s cock was now diamond-hard, a bit moist, and pressed quite firmly into the flesh below his naval. _Hm. He actually gets a bit bigger._ Kylo twisted suddenly, spinning them off the table and dropping them indelicately to the floor. Hux landed first with a hard grunt, cushioning most of Kylo’s fall although his knees would bear the bruises later. Ren used the impact to bounce his wrists out of Hux’s grip and switch so he was pinning the slimmer man down. “Hux!” he barked. Maybe the man’s ability to take an order could help him quell the urges Kylo had inadvertently freed. “Stay still! I need to concentrate if I am to restore your _kriffing hells!_ ” Hux had rammed his knee into Kylo’s sack. Armitage moved his hands quickly while Kylo was distracted and spun to his stomach, crawling away. Kylo regretted ignoring the officer’s hand-to-hand combat training. It was usually so much easier to deal with things with a lightsaber. He hadn’t ever considered before that he might be fighting to _not_ kill someone. His hand lashed out through the pain and grasped Hux’s trouser waist. He was rewarded with a view of a pale white ass as Hux kept scurrying away. Kylo gritted his teeth. “Stop fighting me, you pretentious-”

Hux kicked him in the mouth. 

Kylo tasted blood. At least Hux’s boots were not steel tipped. It didn’t chip his teeth. It did, however, make him angry enough to immediately force-smack Hux into the floor. “Stay. Kriffing. Still.” He crawled over Hux’s prone form and pulled his arms behind his back, pinning Hux’s legs with his own. Yes, that did mean his cock was resting directly over the crack of that perfect pale ass, but he was trying not to think about that too much. He leaned down and let the weight of his own frame pick up the press as he let go with the Force. “Stay,” he whispered into Armitage’s ear. He closed his eyes and let his forehead fall against the nape of the general’s neck. Hux’s mind had gone totally wild. It was difficult to even parse out anything resembling a true thought. But he worried that _suggesting_ a strict return to mental order would be too much, too fast of a transition for a normal mind to handle. Hux drooling in the medbay would mean some other idiot being tasked to take his place. At least he knew how to manage this general. So… _Douse the anger, Armitage. You don’t want to kill me._ He focused the thought as precisely as he could manage and felt Hux slowly stop fighting against him. He sighed. Only… had he succeeded? Hux was still shifting under him but slower, more rhythmically. He was… _He’s grinding on me._ And it felt… better than Kylo would have anticipated. 

“I’m letting go of your arms now.” Kylo gently released the general and rose, resting on the edge of the massage table while he watched Hux recover. The redhead surprised him by slowly rising to his knees, then bracing himself against Kylo’s knee and resting his chin there. His eyes looked a bit glazed, but less feral than they were. “What did you do to me, Ren?” he breathed with a little sigh at the end. Kylo felt briefly betrayed by his own brain for interpreting it as “cute.”

Still, this was pleasant. The matter with the girl… she hadn’t wanted him. Not really. She was more interested in an idea of what he could be than what he was. But the general, even if he wouldn’t have admitted it otherwise, he _did_ want Kylo. Being wanted was so much better than anything Kylo had felt in a long time. He pulled the general up and slid his hands around Hux’s waist, letting them linger on the edges of the bone before tracing them further up and undoing the clasps of Hux’s shirt. He was pleased to see that Hux instinctually brought his hands to rest on Kylo’s hips. “Have you ever heard the Sith code, general?” Hux shook his head. Kylo let his lips trace over the man’s collarbone. They hurt from when Hux had kicked him but that almost made it more pleasurable. “Peace is a lie, there is only passion.” He pulled the general’s shirt open, ran his hands down the fine pecs. “Through passion, I gain strength.” His hands ran lower, found the prize he had so roughly cupped earlier and gently began to stroke it. He smiled to himself as Hux’s breath caught and those still-gloved hands began to press hard into his own skin. “Through strength, I gain power.” One of Hux’s gloved hands found its way up, rising to Kylo’s chest. The leather felt incredible. No wonder the man never took them off. “Through power, I gain victory.” 

Hux ran his hand up to Kylo’s jawline and traced it back, winding into his Supreme Leader’s hair. Kylo leaned into it as Hux pulled his hair back and kissed him hard. That hurt- would his lips be bruised tomorrow?- but Kylo enjoyed the pain, channeling it as he bit Hux’s bottom lip in return. His eyes were closed but he could feel the shifting fabrics as Hux dropped his shirt and jacket to the floor, his gloves beside them. Another shove, and Kylo let his eyes open again as his fell back onto the table. Hux divested himself of pants and boots quickly, but left on his socks and knee garters. _Of course he would._ Kylo was not inclined to protest, however, as Hux climbed on top of him. “And what sort of victory do I gain?” The general was starting to sound like himself again, albeit with a layer of breathy undertones that he would never consider letting out on the bridge.

“I’ll think of something.” 

Hux’s mouth met his again. It was intoxicating. Hands went everywhere, on both of them, like they wanted to pull themselves into one singular person. The general’s lips were just as sweet, on his lips, on his ear, on his nipples, on his-

_Oh._

Kylo’s back arched involuntarily. His mind burst with black fireworks. A gasping, grunting sort of noise rose from his throat. He glanced down to see Hux smirking at him. Only Hux could manage a smirk with another man’s cock in his mouth. “Pleased with yourself, are you gen-” Kylo cut himself off with a groan as Hux pressed his thumb into the base of his shaft and stroked in firm circles. 

“I am when you make noises like that.” Hux dove back into his work with aplomb. The sparks of Kylo’s brain still capable of thought noted he was exceptionally skilled. He lay back for what felt like ages, losing himself to _warm- wet- it’s perfect so perfect he’s perfect-_ as his hands ran through ginger hair and ruined that normally perfectly kept cut. How did this happen? Hux was supposed to be the one falling apart in his hands and now… “Hux… Hu… I’m…. I’m gonna…” Hux doesn’t back off. Kylo cums _loud_ , feeling like the world is falling apart around him. He pants for a breath or two as he comes back into this reality, glancing down to find Hux still there. Smirking. “Get up here,” Kylo growls, dragging his general back toward his lips by his hair. Hux’s mouth tastes like cum, but Kylo doesn’t care. He needs to see Hux lose himself, not even to fix his own Force manipulations anymore, that’s all been thrown by the wayside. He wants to watch Hux’s face, see him tremble at Kylo’s hand. 

While he’s busy making out with Hux, Kylo uses the Force for other advantages. A bottle of massage oil finds its way to his hand and he coats his fingers, unable to suppress a grin as he slides them down Hux’s back and into his warm crevasse. Hux gasps in his ear when the first finger begins to tease him, toying with the hole as he makes it slick. “Yes?” Kylo whispers to him. He knows the answer, but he wants to hear it.

Hux’s breath catches. “Yes.”

Kylo slides the first finger in, entranced by the expression on Hux’s face. So pure in feeling, so… devoted. Another finger. And the noises Hux makes… he wants those in his memory forever. He traces circles inside the general- his general- watching Hux’s face for signs he’s hit the right...

Hux buries his face in Kylo’s shoulder, shuddering and moaning. Kylo grins and brushes his lips over Hux’s cheek, then lifts his chin back up with his free hand. “I want to see you,” he breathes, locking onto those needy, desperate eyes. “Hang on to me, but let me see you.” Hux does, his fingernails digging into Kylo’s shoulder. His eyes flutter, but he stays. Kylo finds it again, that special cluster of nerves that makes Hux breathless, drinks it in as he moans. “Re- Ren- kriff- kriffing-” His skin is delightfully flushed, the touch of him warm, his manhood rock hard against Kylo’s belly, pressed between them. Kylo feels the twitch, he has to be close. “Say my name, Hux,” he implores. “Say it!”

“Ky- Kylo- oh!”

Hux collapses, shaking and panting on Kylo as the Supreme Leader removes his fingers from his general. Kylo strokes his hair absent-mindedly. _That was… fun. Pleasant? What are the words normal people use for this?_ “Was victory worth it, general?”

When Hux looks up again, that controlled, rigid veneer is back. “You’ve mussed my hair.”

Kylo sighs and leans back while Hux composes himself and starts to wander the room in search of his clothing and a towel to wipe himself off with, straightening his socks and his silly garters. His abs are coated in Hux’s seed. He traces a finger through it experimentally, touches it to his tongue as he watches Hux from the corner of his eye. “You can stay a bit if you like.”

Hux glared at him as he pulled on his trousers. “You’ve made me quite late enough already.”

“But you enjoyed it.”

“It was… acceptable.” Kylo rolled his eyes. Hux frowned at him from the reflection of the mirror in which he was attempting to straighten his hair. “You’ve soiled my hair and there are tears in my pant leg. What exactly am I expected to say to the crew?”

“Oh, tell them I tossed you into a wall again.” Hux let out a little noise of disdain. “They’ll believe it.” How did he get so… repressed… again so quickly? Kylo would need to think on this. He didn’t want to prod Hux with the Force every time and risk getting killed. Though… thinking on it, yes, he did want this again. Whatever this was. “You could come by my quarters later.”

Hux snorted. “Not bloody likely.”

Kylo gracefully dove for the door, cutting Hux off as he finished getting his shirt on. “Admit it. You enjoyed this.” Hux sniffed and tried to move around him. “Admit it. Letting go was good for you.” Hux sighed and tried to dive around Kylo and ducked as Kylo tried to pin in him an embrace.

“Do NOT get cum on me, you filthy ingrate.” Hux glared. Ren grinned. “Fine. It was… pleasant. Now let me through, I have work-” he sputtered as Kylo very lightly tightened the air about his neck, not bothering to raise his hand, just pressing in with the Force. 

“Say you liked it.” Hux’s face is turning red again, which pleases Kylo. “Say it and you can go.”

“I… liked it.” Hux coughs as he is freed and Kylo moves away from the door, but not so far that he can’t sneak a smack at Hux’s ass as he unlocks the door. Hux glares. Kylo is delighted to realize there are varying degrees to Hux's glares and mentally classifies this one as "The Starkiller." 

“Come see me later.” 

“...Maybe.” Kylo watches the general’s backside appreciatively as he scurries down the hall. There is a chromium-plated figure at the end of the hall, head slowly tilting at the sight of the general almost jogging away from their naked, cum-stained Supreme Leader. Ren waves, one brow arched. She uncurls a hand from her blaster and makes a brief, confused wave. Belatedly it occurs to Kylo that he probably shouldn’t be naked in corridors, even if Snoke somehow did manage to get away with wearing a bathrobe at all hours. He taps the door closure button and retreats back to the massage table with a smile on his face. _See, this is relaxing. Better than any massage. I don’t need the girl. I’ll get all the passion I need from Hux and I’ll end up twice as strong as her. And he can’t steal off from me in that damn Falcon._ He smiled and closed his eyes, thinking of Hux’s face gone feral just for him. _He’s all mine..._


	2. Further Distractions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After realizing that Hux can serve a new and specially useful purpose, Kylo continues to distract Hux from his work. Hux isn't given any choice in the matter, and he's not pleased about it. Or is he?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't planning to write another section of this but I wanted to do a side from Hux's point of view. So here you go. 
> 
> Kylo is still bad with consent. The First Order should probably offer a Sexual Harassment seminar. Or at least explain aftercare to Kylo.

“Do not. Say. A word.” Hux growls as he passes Phasma. She doesn’t. She simply falls in step behind him. The general seethes, the phrase “damnable Force nonsense” echoing repeatedly in his mind. It was a waking nightmare, losing himself like that. He barely drank alcohol, and the only drugs he would take were stimulants that promote wakefulness so he might maximize his work day. He had never been a fan of… feeling other than himself.  
  
And yet. The experience had not been wholly unenjoyable. It wasn’t as if Hux made much time for sex. He had far more important things to do than try to… date, or even flirt enough to gain a brief encounter. All of that had to be put aside for the good of the Order. What else was he supposed to do, order one of his officers to bend over a console? Some of them would do it, but it would be… a distraction. Hux did not care for distractions.  
  
As it was, Kylo had made him late for his typical overview of his bridge officers with his silly games. Hux ran over it in his mind. There was a section… a blurry portion. He didn’t like that. Kylo had been trying his insolent little intimidation tactics, then… then what. He could remember fairly clearly coming back to himself with his lips on Kylo’s, but there had been… there had been….  
  
He glanced down. There was a torn spot near the hem of his trousers. There was a struggle? That sounded right. Kylo had said he threw him into a wall again, but that wasn’t right. He had… he had thrown Kylo. Into the table. Hux’s brow furrowed. That would be insane. How was he not dead? He was… he had wanted to… kill Kylo. Badly. And it had been so satisfying when his boot hit Kylo Ren in his-  
  
Hux gasped and stopped short. Phasma had to pause and almost veer around him to avoid running into him. “Sir?” her vocal modulator rumbled at him.  
“I kicked him. In the face.” Hux almost laughed. “I kicked him in the face and he didn’t kill me.”  
  
Phasma’s mask stared at him blankly. At this point he was sure she wore it all the time to keep the Stormtroopers from finding out how much of her had to be rebuilt after the last squabble she had with that irritating traitor. She was supposed to be impervious to injury. Now she almost was. “How did you manage that?”  
That was a good question. Hux wasn’t admittedly quite sure. “Element of surprise, I suppose.”  
  
“Hm.”  
  
She escorted him all the way to the bridge, which was out of her usual patrolling cycle. “Worried about me?” he asked as they neared the door.  
  
“No. But _you_ should be worried about you,” she offered as she peeled off to rotate back to the hangar.  
  
Hux frowned.  
  
He made it through the rest of his rotation on the bridge with a great deal of work to distract him. Communications to other parts of the fleet, reports from their various spies on reported Resistance sightings, though none of them seemed useful. He ran two hours over his scheduled allotment in order to make up for the day’s earlier distractions, which would leave him three hours of a sleep cycle. That was enough.  
  
The destroyer was quiet when he finally made his way back to his quarters, and Hux worked on his datapad as he walked, sending out a few communications on issues to be dealt with as soon as his lieutenants woke. His mind had a hard time turning off. He was in the middle of typing a note to Mitaka regarding regular communications array maintenance when he passed through the door to his quarters and years of dormant self-defence training made him aware there was someone in the room. “Lights one hundred” he said casually as he let his monomolecular dagger slip from his sleeve into his hand. It would hardly be the first time someone tried to create an opening in the hierarchy to step into, the only question was which of his lieutenants had decided to carve it. He caught a flurry of black cloth as his eyes adjusted, he parried something- a hand?- away with his free hand and stabbed low, below whatever appendage had reached. It should have been a gutting blow, a guaranteed death… were it not for the hand firmly wrapped about his wrist, stopping it just short. He glanced up and found Kylo Ren’s dark eyes staring back at him.  
  
“You’re playing with dangerous toys, general.”  
  
Hux sniffed indignantly and was fleetingly disappointed that he couldn’t connect the blow. “Supreme Leader, why are you-”  
  
Kylo raised his spare hand to Hux’s temple. “Sleep.” Hux was out before he hit the floor.

***

Hux awoke with a start. His alarms hadn’t gone off, he’d need to make tea quickly and get to the- wait. He couldn’t sit up. Why couldn’t he get out of bed? He hazarded a glance at his wrists. They were… yes, both tied to the bed. And from the faint chill he’d venture he wasn’t wearing any clothes either. Somewhere in the room he heard a low laugh and he sighed impatiently through his nose. “Ren, I have _work_. You realize there is a ship to run, yes? A galaxy to conquer?”  
  
“You are working. At least as far as the official logs are concerned. The Supreme Leader requires your input on a special project.” Kylo was lurking in the shadows at the end of the bed. He’d made it quite dim, which was irritating. Hux liked being able to see his enemies fully.  
“Lights one hu-”  
  
“No.” Hux felt his lower jaw slam shut. “Stop trying to kill the mood.” Hux made an exasperated noise, which was all he could do with his mouth Force-closed. He felt Kylo climbing onto the end of the bed. Was he shirtless? Hux squinted. He was shirtless. Hux looked at the ceiling. _Kriffing hell_. “Behave, or I’ll gag you as well.”  
  
The pressure on his jaw released. “Ren, this cannot possibly be a good use of time-”  
  
“Yes it is. It helps me better channel the Force.” Kylo crawled forward, moving to straddle Hux, who quickly lifted one foot to plant against his chest and fend him off, drawing his other knee upwards.  
  
“I’ll buy you a whore.”  
  
“You already want me.” Hux pursed his lips as Ren grinned at him. He didn’t like it when Ren smiled. A happy Ren was... concerning.  
  
“You’re a distraction. To me and to yourself.”  
  
Kylo took hold of Hux’s ankle and steadily moved it out of the way. If Hux was honest with himself, he didn’t fend off Kylo nearly as hard as he could have as the knight pressed his other knee out of the way and climbed between them. “You like it.”  
  
Hux sighed. Objectively, yes, Kylo was attractive, but there were simply a million more productive things he ought to be doing instead of laying about seeking an orgasm. “I don’t dislike it, but you must see that you can’t lead if you’re-”  
  
“What did I say about killing the mood?” Hux started in again, but only got out a “You-” before something leather was shoved into his mouth. Something soft, finely crafted… _my kriffing uniform gloves_. He pulled sharply on his restraints, sputtering unintelligible threats through the barricade in his mouth. How dare Ren desecrate his uniform again. That insufferable, pigheaded, childish- “Shhh.” Kylo placed a finger over his lips. “I told you to behave.” The leather muffled Hux’s angry roar. Kylo seemed entertained by all this and leaned down to lick the span of Hux’s shoulder to ear. “I knew there was a rabid cur in there somewhere.” Hux growled. Kylo smirked. Hux contemplated whether he knew the appropriate defensive maneuvers to extricate himself. Of course, Kylo would just use the Force on him if he tried… and he had to admit that as Kylo’s hands and lips began to wander that it wasn’t entirely the worst experience. His cock twitched traitorously as Kylo shifted lower. He couldn’t quite stifle his own moan when the Supreme Leader’s tongue traced a path from his belly button down. And down. And- _ahhh._  
Kylo’s mouth felt amazing. Perhaps his biology was betraying him, but Hux couldn’t help enjoying the sensation of a tongue lapping him up and down. He felt almost lightheaded. Kylo had a knack for making him hard, and if he just kept it up…  
  
Hux let out a frustrated groan as Kylo suddenly stopped. “Now now. You kept me waiting with all your complaining, it’s only fair I get to tease you as well.” He ran his hand over Hux’s cock, ensuring he stayed at maximum attention without bringing him any close to completion. Hux dug his ankles into the bed, grumbling through the gloves he was still gagged with. “If I take those out, do you promise to keep your whining about duty to yourself?”  
  
The general sighed. He didn’t suppose he could go onto the bridge with a raging erection anyway. Still, he didn’t particularly care for being ordered about like a mere cadet. He nodded, glaring at Kylo both for his infuriating knack for turning him on and his more infuriating refusal to just let him get off and go back to work. Kylo tossed the gloves from his mouth without touching them and Hux sputtered, instinctively trying to get the taste of the leather out. “I hate you.”  
  
“I know.” Kylo drew his tongue up Hux’s shaft and teased the head briefly. “How about ‘Please, Supreme Leader, suck my cock?’” He looked at Hux and was met with a set of very pursed lips and a dark glare. “No? Oh, well, I’ll suppose I’ll just have to see to myself then….” He lowered his loose-fitting black trousers and began to stroke his own length, making sure to “accidentally” brush Hux’s from time to time to keep his interest. Hux strained against his restraints. “What’s this? I ungag you and now you stubbornly refuse to speak? Come off it, general. We both know how much you love the sound of your own voice.” Hux rolled his eyes and started into another round of telling Kylo he was being an insufferable prat but as soon as he unclenched his teeth he was met with Kylo Ren’s bloody enormous prick down his throat. He choked, his eyes watering before Ren backed off a bit, thrashing in vain against the restraints. “What’s wrong, general? Bit off more than you can chew?” Hux thought very hard about whether he could get away with biting Ren at all. “I wouldn’t recommend it.” _Out of my head you kriffing_ \- Kylo thrust deeper again and Hux shuddered as his airflow was cut off, struggling and getting nowhere. When Ren backed off again, this time retracting entirely from his general’s mouth, it was all he could do to just breathe and try not to choke on his own spit. “I think I like you better like this. All tied up and at a loss for words.”  
  
“Kriff… you….” Hux coughed.  
  
Kylo sighed and slapped Hux just hard enough that it stung. “Try again. You know what you’re supposed to say.”  
  
Hux _hated_ this. Being tied down, told what to say, and yet… and yet he enjoyed it. He’d felt it the first time Ren had choked him with the Force, though he’d never have admitted to the confusing flutters it caused him, deep in his core. He gritted his teeth. “Please, Supreme Leader. Suck. My cock.”  
  
“Good boy.” Hux gasped as Kylo’s mouth enveloped him more deeply than he expected. Kylo’s hands slid under his ass, firmly grasping the flesh there and keeping him pinned even more, only allowing his legs to shake and his toes to curl. He thought he might lose his mind on the spot when one of Kylo’s fingers began to dance around his hole. “Kylo,” he moaned, “Kylo, I’m-”  
  
“Not yet.” Hux felt Kylo’s hand shift to encircle him tightly and squeeze, shutting down the approaching wave before Hux went over the edge. Hux shuddered. Very, very slowly, Kylo pressed a single finger in, not doing anything else to let Hux gain traction. The part of Armitage’s brain that could not be turned off from pure analysis wondered where the hell he had found lubricant in Hux’s quarters, but the rest of him was being driven blindingly mad. Was there a second finger? A third? He could hardly tell. Ren was stopping just short of hitting the spot he needed, and Hux couldn’t manage to wiggle into making him do it. He felt like someone had turned off the gravity. “Kylo…” he breathed, having trouble with even the one word.  
  
“No. Who am I?”  
  
Hux tried to piece his mind back together. Words. What were words? “Supreme- Supreme Leader-” He screamed as Kylo released him, feeling like the floor had dropped out beneath them. He was panting when reality started creeping back in, feeling more spent than he had in years. His wrists hurt. He had been fighting the restraints like the Resistance had caught him.  
  
“You make delightful noises, do you know that?” Kylo brushed a hand over his cheek, flicking a stray ginger lock from Hux’s forehead. “Let’s see what others you can manage.”  
  
“What?”  
  
Kylo ran his hands around the back of Hux’s thighs and pressed them upward, exposing his ass to Ren’s smirking attentions. “You think I did all that just for you?” He smacked one hand across Hux’s ass, leaving a red mark the width of his hand. “My turn.” Hux could feel the wet of the lubricant, a warm slick sensation as Kylo spread him and pressed within. He couldn’t breathe. He’d never felt so full. He felt _everything_ , everything was magnified a million times over. This time Hux didn’t struggle, he felt like it was all he could do just to remain conscious and moan plaintively with each thrust. Kylo ran his hands through Hux’s hair, stroked his neck, pressed his fingers to Hux’s mouth. Hux sucked them eagerly, grateful for the outlet. He wasn’t surprised when Ren began to choke him, watching through blurring vision as the groaned and fucked his way to his own orgasm. He wheezed when Ren finally let him go, distantly noting that his eyes had betrayed him and were leaking all over his face. Kylo brushed it away carefully. “There.” Kylo set his head on Hux’s chest and laid there peacefully, long enough that Hux thought he might have fallen asleep.  
  
“Um. Ren?”  
  
“I’m not asleep.” _Eavesdropper_ , Hux thought at him. He’d need to figure out how to better shield his thoughts, lest Ren get too much of a whiff of Hux’s occasional fantasies about blowing him out of an airlock- “I don’t mind.”  
  
“Hm?” Hux arched a brow.  
  
“That you want to kill me. I don’t mind.” Ren turned to face him. “That was the problem. The girl, she wanted to save me. There’s no power for me in that. It’s… it’s giving up. You, on the other hand, have absolutely no qualms about shooting me in the back if you thought you could get away with it. _That_ is what I need.”  
  
“You… don’t mind.” Hux blinked. This all suddenly felt like an overly elaborate trap. “But it’s treason.”  
  
“Sure. If you succeed. Here’s my deal for you. You can make as many attempts as you like. But if I catch you, I get to punish you for it personally. However I see fit.” Ren sat up and straddled Hux. “I’ll just keep getting stronger in the Force, but I imagine your efforts will give me some little amusement.”  
  
Hux thought rapidly. This was a chance, a free chance, really, at being Supreme Leader. If he could win. Kylo had set up a game where the punishment was… manageable, probably, but the prize… the prize was everything. “Really?”  
  
“I’ll win. But yes, make your efforts.” Hux had already stopped listening. There was too much to plan. So many options, so many methods to think on. How fast could he put something together? He was already having visions of himself on the throne… he didn’t notice when Kylo dismounted and wandered into the refresher, announcing he was taking a shower. Not until he reached for his datapad to take some notes and found he was still bound to the bed.  
  
“Erm. Kylo?” Hux pulled at them, they were still as tight as ever. “Supreme Leader? Could you…”  
  
“I’m thinking it’ll be a long shower. Give you some time to think.” Kylo smiled and closed the door.  
  
“Ren. Ren! Don’t you _kriffing_ dare leave me- Ren!” Hux shouted.  
  
_Kriff._


	3. Mistakes Were Made

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kylo's "adjustments" to Hux's temperament go even further awry. Kylo realizes playing in other people's minds might have unforeseen consequences.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yeah, this started as a one shot and now it's a whole thing. My bad. No one told me fanfic was addictive!
> 
> So there's not much smut in this chapter. It's more serious than I expected it to be and then I had to go and adjust my tags. Apologies if that isn't what you're expecting. I just write and see what happens and this happened! Eep! Comments welcome!

Repairs to the Finalizer after the debacle on Crait were taking longer than expected. Somewhat surprisingly, Kylo Ren was not bothered by this. Let his mother and Rey and the paltry remains of the Resistance find their other allies. As soon as they made a peep that hinted at their location, Hux and the remaining might of the First Order ships would see that they were destroyed. And if that didn’t do the job, Kylo would call back in the Knights of Ren. They’d been scattered for a long time, mostly, he suspected, to prevent an insurrection against Snoke. There was a reason his personal guard wore lightsaber resistant armor. Kylo could see the issue with it now, with it having been so long that he was no longer sure how dedicated to him the knights were. Would they rise up against him? It was better for the moment to let them keep to their existing missions. Separate. And preferably not plotting, as he was having much more fun dealing with Hux’s plotting… or more specifically the inevitable results of his general’s repeated failures. 

First, Armitage tried to poison him. Some sort of venom, though Kylo did not particularly care to learn all the intricacies. He’d known before the food was near him, and he’d snapped the neck of the stormtrooper who brought it for knowing as well. But he waited a bit before punishing Hux. Hux knew he knew, after all the stormtrooper was dead. Kylo waited patiently as the general’s nerves frayed over when his punishment would come. He had a better feel for it since he’d been in the general’s head before, and he savored each time the fear and anxiety over whether or not Kylo would kill him turned into a brief flicker of lust at the idea of Kylo’s punishments. Hux still pushed it down, but Kylo was confident. If he just let Armitage get these little traitorous needs out of his system, he could prove even more useful. Every now and then he’d give him a little nudge with the Force, a little tap on that self-control button Hux had installed in his own brain. To help him resolve his pent-up nature, Kylo told himself. It’s good for him to let go. 

That particular session had yielded Hux getting bent over Kylo’s knee and soundly spanked until his ass was redder than his hair. Then he ensured Hux came. Twice. Kylo was really starting to enjoy how wild Armitage looked when he orgasmed. 

Next, Hux had managed to sabotage his personal TIE fighter. That was irksome. Kylo only prevented the engine from rupturing by grabbing a set of wires with his gloved hand and forcing the electricity elsewhere. When Hux had realized that one actually made him angry he had spent half the day attempting to evade Ren by effectively hiding in various spots throughout the ship. Kylo made use of him for a full two day cycles to make up for it without letting him cum, and by the end Hux was begging him for release. That had been… very pleasing. And each time Kylo had him he danced with the Force across Hux’s mind. _Free yourself. Let everything go._

Most recently, Hux had planted explosives in the door lock to Kylo’s room. That... seemed a bit extreme, even for him, but Kylo supposed he had to give credit for ingenuity. He finished disarming them and sent Armitage a brief private datapad message. _Report to my chambers when your bridge shift is complete._ Then he waited, eyes closed, for that pleasant burst of fear. Or lust. Whichever the dear general was leaning toward at the moment. 

It didn’t come.

Kylo frowned. He should have felt… something, even if it was anger. Hux was never remiss at checking his datapad. Kylo knew he wasn’t in meetings. So. Where was he that he wasn’t bothering to report back to his Supreme Leader? Kylo reached out… 

It felt like a wall. How did Hux know how to get up a mental wall? He’d have to feel… very threatened… to manifest one by accident…

He was out the door before he finished the thought.

The bridge was in a fair bit of chaos by the time he arrived, but Hux was nowhere to be seen. Mitaka was in a corner whimpering as Unamo held his blood hand up. “It’s just bacta spray, stop snivelling!” She met his eyes as she finally managed to get Mitaka to stay still enough to spray him. “Supreme Leader. Sir.” 

“What happened here?” 

“General Hux received a message, sir. He looked... disturbed... by it. Lieutenant Mitaka asked him what was amiss and he bit the Lieutenant. Sir. Nearly took a finger off.” Kylo blinked. “We’re waiting for the medical team.”

“And… where is the general now?”

She nodded toward the door. “He went toward the lift. The stormtroopers were too unnerved to stop him, but I believe Captain Phasma has been summoned.” 

Kylo couldn’t decide if that was a good thing or not. “Very well. Carry on.” He stepped over Mitaka on his way out, pulling out his own datapad and security footage. Hux might have accidentally made himself invisible to the force, but he was not invisible to cameras. Kylo caught him in a corridor. He was in the stormtrooper arsenal. That… that was a bad sign. 

Was Kylo panicked? He didn’t panic, he reassured himself. No, this was just… a surprising and unusual situation that he would get the best of as soon as he could get there. 

He could hear the sizzle of laser against steel as he marched down the corridor and rounded the corner. There was Hux, his eyes downcast, walking slowly and dragging a laser axe against the wall. Kylo briefly wondered if this is what the rest of the crew saw when he unleashed his lightsaber against the various ship consoles. “General. What are you doing?”

Armitage didn’t look up, he simply spun the axe so it created a spiralling pattern on the wall. “I was wondering when you would show up.”

“Put down the axe, Armitage.”

“No.” The laser sizzled dangerously. “I don’t want to.”

Kylo was beginning to think he’d underestimated his effect on Hux’s mind. “Armitage. This isn’t you. Put it down.” 

Armitage looked up. His eyes looked like he’d been loaded up on spice. “Make me.”

Kylo exhaled and took a step forward, positioning his stance carefully. “Armitage. Drop. It.”

Hux raised the axe. Kylo felt the familiar weight of his saber drop into his hand. He ignited. 

Hux smiled.

They met in sparks of pale blue and red. Kylo parried the axe easily. His instincts said he should spin, cut through the middle, dice Hux in half like soft clay…

But he didn’t. He didn’t want to kill Hux. So he held back. It was a different sort of connection than what he had with Rey, but there was still something between them. Not the Force, but something else. And for that, he wouldn’t kill Hux. So he knocked the axe aside and cut the axe through the haft, severing the lasers from their source. As the fizzled from existence, Hux screamed and charged toward Kylo…

Only to be very suddenly and violently jerked backward. A chromium-plated arm wrapped about his throat and held him there while he struggled and turned and unpleasant shade of purple. He beat against her arm until finally he stopped and fell still. Kylo watched this carefully. She wasn’t killing him. Only knocking him out. But he wasn’t entirely sure until the Force wall dropped and he could _feel_ Hux again. He didn’t realize he had been holding his own breath as well. 

Phasma let him fall to the floor and raised her mask to face Kylo. “Kylo Ren.”

“Captain Phasma. Thank you for your… intervention.”

“I did not intervene on your behalf.” Kylo had the distinct impression she was raising an eyebrow at him, though he couldn’t see it. “I believe the saying is... If you break it, you buy it.” She nudged Hux’s limp form with her foot. “Fix him. Or I will need to have words with you about it.” Kylo did not need the Force to understand her undertone. _This is your fault_ followed by _I do not have qualms about breaking you in half._

There was still a part of him that wanted to react by punching something, by rending the ship apart with his saber. But that part, as Hux had pointed out to him _repeatedly,_ was not fit to be Supreme Leader. He gritted his teeth and bent to pick up Hux. “I would also recommend coming up with a suitable excuse for this,” she offered as she turned to go.

“You won’t help?”

“That is not in my list of duties. Supreme Leader.” 

Kylo thought hard as he carried Hux back to his quarters, keeping an eye out with the Force and ensuring that anyone who caught a glance of them did not retain that information. What would Hux do? He would have a plan, some sort of contingency. Something to save face. 

_What would Hux do?_

The question haunted him as he tied up Hux and tucked him into the bed. If Hux were himself, he could fix this in seconds. He tried to recall every time he and Hux had spoken to Snoke at the same time. If Hux was in trouble, what did he do?

The answer was suddenly clear as a bell. All the times Hux had sneered at him and proclaimed whatever arrogant idea he had while insinuating that any delays were the result of Kylo’s anger, Kylo’s failure to maintain control. It was so clear he could almost hear Hux’s Imperial accent tinting his own thoughts.

_Find a scapegoat._

That would be something of a challenge. Only… the officers were all terrified of the Force anyway. And none of them understood it. And Hux usually blamed everything on him anyway. He sighed and opened a holo channel to the bridge. Lieutenant Unamo answered.

“Supreme Leader.”

“Lieutenant. Has Mitaka been taken to medical?”

“Yes sir. I am assuming acting Captaincy until one of the other Captains arrives.” There was an unspoken set of questions there, regarding her ability and Kylo’s willingness to let her do such a thing. He didn’t particularly care who ran what, but _(what would Hux do)_ he knew he ought to stroke her ego.

“Very good, Lieutenant. I trust you have it in hand. I have obtained General Hux. It seems that as he was the first to enter the throne room following the scavenger girl’s attack, he must have encountered her and she employed a very nefarious Jedi trick against him without his knowledge. It has been working against him since then.”

Unamo looked startled. “Can he return to duties, sir?”

“It is rather like a serious physical injury, Lieutenant. I am securing him apart from the crew until such time as I am sure he is fully himself again.”

“Very good sir.”

“That will be all, Lieutenant.” He clicked off the holo and sighed, putting his face in his hands. _What am I going to do?_

Kylo turned and sat on the bed beside Hux, idly stroking his hair. His throat would bruise. Phasma’s chromium was gentle. He’d live. But what was Kylo supposed to do about his _mind?_

He hated that he had to do it, but he reached back in his own thoughts to his training with Luke. The Sith were about dominance. The Jedi were about peace. Serenity over passion. So. Passion was the source of the isse. How did he get to serenity? 

Luke’s voice from long ago echoed in his mind. “You can’t make anyone feel any differently, and it isn’t right to try. Just let them feel what they feel. It is what is in your own heart that matters.” He had been speaking about the outcry when Leia’s true parentage had been revealed, and though he still held a fair amount of anger about that- especially that they never told him- they worked. This wasn’t really Hux that he’d been toying with. It’d been a version of Hux that was emulating Kylo. Wild, console-rending Kylo. _At least you can tell everyone who’s ever said fuck yourself that you already have._ And in turn… Kylo found he was acting like Hux. Not that he’d ever admit it.

Kylo swallowed his pride. He had to clean up his own mess. For once. He climbed into the bed with Hux and turned the sleeping general toward him. He put his hand gently on Hux’s cheek and bent down. “I’m sorry, Armitage.” His lips met Hux’s.

As Kylo kissed him, he let the Force flow out and draw back everything of Kylo’s from Armitage’s mind. All the prodding, all the chaos, everything that belonged to Kylo Ren, retreated from Hux’s mind. Kylo could feel the structure rebuilding itself, the orderly and pristine mind that belonged only to Hux tossing him back out. 

When he was sure Hux was of his own mind- or, as sure as he could be- Kylo began to untie him. Mostly. He left one wrist linked to the headboard, telling himself he didn’t want Hux running off if Kylo fell asleep. Just in case. 

He took Hux’s other hand in his and watched him sleep, laying at Hux’s side. Waiting for the general to wake.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Mitaka is okay. Promise. Poor guy.


	4. Regaining Control

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After realizing what Kylo did, Hux remains furious at him until an assassination attempt brings the two back together. Hux makes a power play that might be a step farther than Ren is willing to allow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Plot in the front, smut in the back. It's like a written mullet. 
> 
> There is some MC injury (not sexual) in this, but they'll be okay. Also neither of them know how to deal with the prospect of feelings or adult conversations. Shocking, I know. Also since a portion of the smut occurs in, effectively, a dreamscape, some normal rules of proper sexual etiquette get tossed aside (eg, lube).
> 
> Someone get Hux a hug and therapist, stat!

Hux woke up with a massive headache. He felt like he was extensively and brutally hungover in a way he had not been since he graduated the Academy. Even his fingers hurt. His brain _itched_. He tried to rub his eyes but blearily realized one of his wrists was tied to the headboard.

He groaned and pulled the covers over his face. How long had he been out? He didn’t remember drinking anything- he didn’t drink, for kriff’s sake- but… there had been the bridge, and Mitaka with his bloody hand-wringing and… 

Hux felt suddenly extremely nauseous recalling the taste of blood in his mouth. He was ruined, his career was ruined, he’d never be allowed on a ship again-

“Oh good, you’re awake.” Kylo _kriffing_ Ren. Of course he was here to enjoy this fresh torment. Or perhaps he’d decided to keep his dishonorably discharged general as a personal pet, just to continue ruining Hux’s day for the rest of eternity. Hux pulled down the sheet to his nose and glared. Kylo was holding out a cup of water. “You should drink this.”

“Tell me it’s poisoned, and I happily will.”

Kylo frowned. “Don’t be dramatic. You should hydrate.”

Hux rolled his eyes. “What, are you training for medical now?”

“They’ve told me that every time I’ve had an injury. Fluids are important. Mostly for blood loss, but still…” 

Hux frowned. This was… odd. Kylo was trying to be nice? Everything about this seemed like a trap. He extended his free hand and took the cup. He took a sip experimentally. It only tasted like water. “Thank you.”

“How do you feel?” Hux’s brow furrowed. This was definitely some sort of trap. Kylo Ren did not have the capability to act like a decent person, he was a willful toddler trapped in a fighter’s body. 

“Like I’ve been hit by a destroyer,” Hux said flippantly. It seemed safest to continue with as few emotions as possible until he could work out what the kriff Kylo was up to. “Though I imagine it was much worse than that. Did I sleep through my own court-martial?”

Kylo raised an eyebrow. “What court-martial?”

“I…” Hux considered a moment. He _had_ attacked Mitaka, yes? Yes, surely he did. He could not remember _why_ , exactly, but there was that, and then…. He paled suddenly. Had he attacked Kylo Ren directly? While Kylo had his saber out? That was past a lost temper, that was bloody suicidal. “Assuming that I did not just have some very strange dreams, I don’t think it’s actually a court-martial I should be worried about. I should be out an airlock. In pieces.”

“Mmm.” Kylo sat on the end of the bed and looked away for a bit. “You don’t need to worry about it. The matter has been taken care of.”

“I’m sorry? Taken care of? I’m not dead, so I need you to be slightly more specific.”

“I told the officers that the scavenger girl had altered your mind with the Force and I am removing her influence from you. Your position is secure.”

“You told them the _scavenger girl_ ….” The gears turned quickly in Hux’s mind. Snoke, dead, carved in half by a lightsaber and all the guard dead as well, and Kylo’s insistence the girl did it. Hux felt anger overtaking his headache. He sat up to his full height and his voice went low and cold. “What did you do, Ren?”

“It’s fixed now, you don’t need to worry about it.”

“What. Did. You. Do?”

Kylo half-turned toward him but did not quite meet his eye. “It was an accident. I thought it might do you good… to loosen up a little…”

“It was an _accident_?” Hux was infuriated. Everything he had done- everything they had done- and he couldn’t even be sure whether it was his own choice. He snapped his hand back and slapped Kylo across his insufferably handsome face. “How dare you.”

Kylo didn’t respond, he just looked away again. 

“You know what, I don’t know why I’m even surprised.” Hux turned his attentions to the rope that still tied one of his wrists to the headboard. “You never _think_ , Ren, you just _do_ and kriff the consequences and how are you so blastedly good at tying knots?!” He growled in frustration as he failed to untie himself and glared when Ren stood and shuffled over to do it for him. Wrenching his arm free as soon as the knot was loose enough, he quickly tossed himself free of the covers and marched toward the door. “I am going back to the bridge.”

“Don’t,” Ren said quietly. “Your uniform….” Hux looked down and felt his brain cells scream as he realized that it was both splattered with blood and singed across the midsection. “Just take the day. They can have you tomorrow. It’s almost the end of shift anyway, and you need rest.”

“You. Do not. Get to tell me what to do. Right now.” Hux hissed between his teeth. Everything still _hurt_ and he likely did need to get to his quarters, but he couldn’t let himself give Kylo the satisfaction of knowing that. 

“Armitage…”

“Do not speak to me!” Tears welled in Hux’s eyes and suddenly he wasn’t sure if it was from the pain or the anger he was struggling to keep down. Kylo shifted toward him, offered a hand. 

“Let me explain.”

“Don’t,” Hux choked out, but it was all he could manage. He got himself out the door before any emotions could get the better of him and only thought of breathing, breathing in a strict, controlled order, until he made it to his quarters. Then he held his face into a pillow and screamed until his throat was raw. He fell asleep wondering why this had hurt him so badly. He didn’t _trust_ Kylo Ren. He had even tried to kill Kylo Ren. Yet this… it felt like a broken heart, if Hux only believed he had a heart to break.

Hux avoided Kylo determinedly for the next several days. If he was asked a question he would respond. If he was given an order he would carry it out. But otherwise he did not speak to Kylo and would not even acknowledge that he existed. It was hard enough seeing Mitaka flinch every time Hux even glanced his way, and any time he caught one of his officers idly staring in his direction he wondered if the other foot would drop now, if he’d still be dragged out in cuffs and ejected from the nearest airlock for crimes against his own crew. But for fear of either himself or Kylo, however, they appeared to accept the story as given. 

With the Finalizer departing for a First Order-sympathetic world, Kylo was due to make a speech, his first as Supreme Leader. He had to do it because, though it was normally Hux’s purview to carry out such acts of flagrant propaganda, Hux wanted to see Kylo make a bantha of himself on stage. Or at least hear about it, as Hux was considering breaking his own rule regarding drinks and getting well and truly smashed at the nearest cantina. 

His sense of personal honor wouldn’t let him do that, though. He would go, and sit in a place suitable to his rank but as far away as he could manage. And he would be fine. This was all fine. 

When the day of the speech arrived, Hux folded his hands and stared at the wall for the shuttle ride down. He could feel Ren watching him, but he pretended not to. As long as Ren didn’t engage him, he could keep this up indefinitely. 

The new Supreme Leader was not naturally suited to propaganda (or, truth be told, interacting with people in any way, shape, or form), but he did have a certain animal charisma that made people listen to him. So, Hux thought as he watched from the furthest corner of the first row of the audience (he ignored the request to have him on stage at Ren’s back in the traditional position of support), it was not as bad as it could have been. 

Ren was in the middle of the usual First Order pitch about turning children over to their training academies when Hux saw the first glint of light off metal in the building to his right. His sniper’s instincts kicked in immediately. It was a good spot to take a shot from, not really that far off so it wouldn’t require much skill with a true rifle. A decent shot with a blaster would even hit a target at that range, but all the nearby buildings should have been cleared. Skimming over the building he realized he could not see a single white helmet. Not in the windows, not on the roof. _Kriff. Kriff kriff kriff._

When the second glint of metal came he moved without thinking. Everything seemed to slow, even Kylo’s deep voice as it hitched in confusion when he saw Hux running toward him. He leapt up the gap to the stage and drew his own blaster, taking a shot toward the window just as he heard the round fire.

He could hear the glass break, sudden screaming and blaster fire as the stormtroopers realized what was going on. Somewhere nearby Phasma was barking orders. He noted all of this before he realized his firing arm was hanging uselessly at his side, and there was a searing pain through his shoulder. He screamed through clenched teeth, falling to his knees. Darkness enveloped him… no, it was fabric. His Supreme Leader, blocking out the sun like a damn eclipse. “Armitage.” His voice sound terribly far away. “Armitage. You’re injured.”

“Yes, I do think that happens when you get shot,” Armitage hissed. The pain was brutal. He wasn’t sure if he’d had worse. He squinted in the direction of the building. Had he hit the shooter? That would be a hell of a shot. They could invent a new Academy contest in his honor. He laughed to himself and tilted over, only to be caught by Ren before he hit the ground.

“General. Look at me.” Hux felt Ren’s gloved hand cup his face and turn it skyward. “Can you feel your hand?”

Hux blinked at him. He tried to move his arm but it was all needles and as soon as he shifted it felt like he was being run through by pure plasma. He gritted his teeth and tried very hard not to let his eyes water. “More or less,” he grunted at Ren. 

“Phasma,” Ren shouted at the chromium-clad woman, “we need a medic!”

The captain finished firing a shot with her long-range rifle, then looked to the Supreme Leader. “Take the shuttle. We’ve detected an full incursion team. You will be safer in orbit.” Her masked dipped as her gaze slid to Hux, but she quickly turned it back toward her targets. “I will handle this.”

Ren picked him up like he weighed nothing more than a doll and ran with him. The jog was making Hux nauseous. Or he was going into shock. He wasn’t quite sure. “Why… are you so worried?” he asked, trying to force the words to override the pain.

“You didn’t let me die.” 

“Is that… so surprising?” Kylo gave him a look indicating that, yes, it was, very. “You’re the Supreme Leader. That would hardly look good for my track record.” The pain was dissipating. Alarm bells were ringing in his mind informing him that was bad, but there was another part that was telling him he really ought to just go to sleep. “Besides, no one gets to kill you but me.”

Ren snorted. “If I had known you would talk to me again if you got shot I would have arranged for it to happen earlier.”

There were other officers in the shuttle. Escaping. Evacuating. Hux felt like he was floating. Ren was talking again, but it felt like too much work to process the words. Don’t fall asleep, don’t black out, don’t go… he was really rather bossy. “Why are you so annoying?” Hux asked blearily. Kylo squeezed his arm alongside the wound and suddenly everything snapped into very sharp, painful focus that left Hux wheezing in agony. “What the _kriff_ , Ren?”

“You have to stay awake.”

“Remind me to let you die next time.”

He was alert enough when Kylo dragged him into the medical bay to protest when Kylo insisted on helping him get his clothes off for the bacta tank, even though the doctors assured him they could do it. He never liked the sensation of being dumped into the viscous fluid, but there was nothing for it. At least he’d be asleep. Sleep sounded nice.

The last thing he saw before he drifted away was Kylo’s face, and his hand pressed to the glass. As sleep took him Hux brushed his own fingers against the spot his Supreme Leader was touching. A single, mirrored thought bridged them through the glass.

_Thank you for saving me._

 

*****

Hux wasn’t much of a dreamer. He’d have a few, every now and then, but usually brief ones that he didn’t recall. Still, he was sure it was a dream when he “woke” to find himself in the audience room of the Finalizer… or… wait. Was it? This was decorated as he would have done it, all lush First Order logo tapestries and symmetry that would look tremendous in propaganda videos. The only defect Ren was sitting on the floor in front of the throne, meditating. Hux walked around him and sat on the throne, which, of course, fit him perfectly and felt both comfortable and regal as he fanned out his greatcoat to the edges. 

“It suits you.” Kylo’s eyes had opened, and he was watching Hux from the floor. Hux frowned. 

“Is this,” he waved his hand about the room, “your doing? More of your Force tricks?”

“No, this is yours. Your mind, your room. Think of me as… peering in through the windows. I promise I won’t touch anything this time.”

Hux pursed his lips. “I’m not entirely sure that metaphor helps.”

Ren chuckled low. “You must be feeling better.”

“Must I?” 

“Your mind is busying itself while your body heals. Earlier you didn’t even have the energy for that and there wasn’t any decoration in here at all.”

“Oh.” Hux tapped a finger against the throne. It _felt_ real. “I’m still in the bacta, then, aren’t I.”

“Yes.” Kylo seemed to be watching him contemplatively. It would have annoyed Hux were it occurring in reality, but here it didn’t seem quite as bad. He cleared his throat.

“Did I hit them?”

“The sniper? No, but you blew out the window. Made it an obvious target. The strormtroopers had an easy time after that. I believe pieces of the ones Phasma personally dealt with are still being recovered.”

“Hmph.” Hux was mildly irked that he had missed. He would need to put in some time on the gun range when they returned to the ship. “So... why are you here?” Hux arched a brow at Kylo. “You just survived an assassination attempt. I imagine there are people to kill, failed subordinates to be tossed into walls, that sort of thing.”

“I wanted to be sure you were alright.” Hux narrowed his eyes. Ren was being almost subservient, sitting there beneath him and acting contrite, which made him suspicious… though at the same time he had to admit it made his ego feel particularly pleased. 

“You can do that without… sitting here and watching. Or whatever this is.”

Kylo nodded and rose, sweeping toward Hux with that great black cape. It gave him a momentary flutter of fear, that Ren would be well within his rights to toss him from the throne and pummel him to a bloody pulp… were they in the real world, Hux reminded himself. But Ren knelt before him and extended a hand. Hux stared at it for a long moment, then hesitantly took it. “I… dislike seeing you hurt.” Hux’s eyebrow threatened to ascend through his hairline. “Not with regard to the shooting, though that was not pleasant. But…. you were worried about making your own choices.” Hux started to protest, he had not said as much aloud, but Ren cut him off. “I know, I know, but sometimes you think so loudly. I want… I think it’s within you to enjoy… certain things... even without my help. And this is your mind, so you can make the rules. Since you aren’t conscious, it won’t even count as a distraction from work, so….”

Oh. _Oh._

Hux froze. He didn’t think he should be able to blush in a dream but he certainly felt like he was. If his mind had gears they would have suddenly ground to a halt. There was a pull, low in his core, the sort of yearning he would never have given in to without Ren’s meddling in the first place, _damn him_ …. “Is this your manner of apologizing?”

Ren offered one of his ridiculous just-lopsided smiles. The look had long made Hux consider whether he ought to kiss him or slap him, thought he tended to force down the former. _At least I used to._ “If you like.”

“I hope your skills at demonstrating an apology are better than your attempt to voice one.” Hux didn’t bother to quell the note of challenge in his voice.

“Let me show you.” There was something predatory in Ren’s gaze now and the look made Hux’s heart race. He felt his walls, the ones so ingrained to keep duty and order before all else, crack. 

He exhaled and drew Ren’s hand toward himself. “Then show me.” 

Kylo rose and placed either knee on the side of Hux’s hips, straddling him. He gently took Hux’s chin and tilted it up, drawing him into a deep kiss. Hux let his hands wander, skimming over Ren’s thighs to the edge of his shirt, which he started to unbutton only for the fabric to vanish in his hand, leaving Kylo suddenly shirtless. Hux pulled back in confusion, staring at his hand. “It’s your mind,” Ren whispered at his throat. “You think ‘no shirt’, it’s gone.”

“That’s useful… ah,” Hux moaned as Kylo gently bit his neck. His own shirt vanished and he buried his own lips into Kylo’s pec, running his teeth over the firm and sturdy muscle. They continued that way for a while, teasing and tasting each other, hands and tongues sliding over supple flesh. Hux’s fingers brushed lower, over the ridge of Kylo’s pants. For a second he considered just willing them off Ren entirely- and they did in fact immediately evaporate- but a smirk rose to his lips as a different, daring thought occurred to him. He gave Ren’s chest a nudge with the edge of his fingers and watched him flay back, skidding across the floor. Kylo looked like wrath incarnate for a moment until his eyes met Hux’s as the general rose from the throne and sauntered toward him. “Pretending you have the Force?”

“My mind, my rules, isn’t it?” Hux walked closer and a long leather line appeared. He smiled with his teeth as Kylo realized it was connected to a newly appeared collar at his throat. 

“Clever,” Kylo hissed. Hux smirked. Kylo getting angry only made Hux want to fuck him harder.

“I’m counting it as a demonstration of your very well-meaning apology.” Hux yanked on the leash, dragging Kylo onto his knees. He liked the idea of keeping his own pants on, so he just drew his cock out, mostly erect already, and placed the tip against Kylo’s lower lip. “Suck.” He had had this thought before, fleetingly, whenever Ren did something egregious to his ship’s poor abused technical consoles, usually followed by “check to see if he is immune to blaster fire applied directly to the face” or “what if I just detonite his quarters”. The latter feelings had won out, every time. But now that the bastard had opened the door to the other set of emotions... he was kriffing well going to feel the effects.

Kylo opened those pleasingly plump lips and took him in. Hux’s eyes rolled back. How was he so kriffing good at everything-

_Some of us practice, general._

Hux looked down to see Kylo smirking even with his lips wrapped around his dick. “No eavesdropping!”

_Again, we are inside your mind. Your thoughts are literally echoing for me._

“Shut up and focus on the task at hand.” Hux ran a hand through Ren’s intoxicatingly long hair and forced him down further, making him take his cock as deeply as possible. Ren stubbornly refused to choke, however, he just ran his hands up Hux’s legs and gripped his thighs, digging his nails in. Hux hissed with pleasure. He roughly encouraged Ren along until his own eyes were fluttering, then shoved him off without warning. Ren tipped onto his ass gracelessly, watching Hux with feral eyes. Hux raised a foot and pressed the toe of his boot against Kylo’s chest, lowering him to the floor. “Good boy.”

He straddled Ren, his mind-projected pants vanishing from his pale legs. This was probably the finest trick about whatever this mind-space Ren had invaded was. If everything was as he willed it, he didn’t need to prepare. Kriff, he didn’t even need lube, because everything would simply feel as if it were so with no effort on his own part. Amazing. He skimmed the soft flesh of his ass over the hard mass of Kylo’s cock, teasing. The knight reached up to cup his face, kiss him… which Hux permitted. But the knight was soon dropped back to the floor as he found his hands forced over his head and lashed together by a thick band of dark leather. Ren tested against them experimentally. “You know, if I wasn’t absolutely sure you were not Force sensitive the ease with which you adapt to this would be unnerving.”

Hux preened internally but kept his face impassive. “Flattery will get you nowhere, Ren.” He reached a hand back and guided Kylo’s member toward his own eager hole, taking him in slowly. So slowly, in fact, that he could watch Kylo’s face as the larger man fought the urge to break his bonds and force Hux to get on with it already. “You’re behaving,” Hux noted, brushing the tip of his finger over one of Ren’s nipples. 

“I do keep my word… on occasion,” Ren groaned as Hux took him in completely. Hux greatly enjoyed watching him like this, bound and at his mercy. Mercy he wasn’t entirely inclined to give, not yet. He rode Ren tactically, never keeping one pace for long, letting him see the edge but not get near enough to go over. Ren, to his credit, bore it well, alternating between enticing, guttural noises and the occasional glare Hux’s way. Hux leaned forward and ran his thumb over Kylo’s lower lip. “I could keep you like this for hours, Ren.”

Ren let out a choked laugh. “Your mind, but my Force. I could restrain you from relief for _days_.”

“Hmph.” Hux picked up his pace suddenly, dragging Ren closer and closer to orgasm. Kylo’s legs were shuddering under him. “Beg me.”

“What?”

“Beg. Me.” Hux willed Kylo’s cock to remain, throbbing, terribly stimulated with every thrust, but unable to go further. 

Kylo growled in dissent. His back arched and Hux watched his fingers curling, clawing the air. “Let me cum, you bastard!”

Hux sighed. Ren wasn’t cut out for begging. “Close enough.” He eased his restraint over Ren and simply fucked him, watching the knight’s dark hair be tossed about as Ren howled through his orgasm, the fervor of it palpable with every twitch Hux could feel within him. It left Ren panting. Hux smiled. He draped himself across Ren’s broad, heaving chest and undid the restraints keeping Kylo’s arms up. Ren’s joints clicked as he rolled them back into a more comfortable position. Hux was feeling generous. He’d let Ren have a rest before he had another go at him.

“Are you serious?” Ren moaned. 

_Eavesdropper._ “I haven’t had my turn yet.”

Ren sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I didn’t think it was possible, but you’re actually _more_ demanding when you don’t have a bridge to command.”

“Whose fault is that?”

“I’m going to find the pieces of that shooter’s body and dice them. Again.” 

Hux flicked him in the nipple. “I meant you. Don’t you have some sort of… danger sense?”

Ren frowned. “I was focused on the speech.”

“Leave the speeches to me. You take the blaster fire next time.”

Hux felt Kylo’s hand work its way into his hair. “So you don’t intend to kill me.” Hux pursed his lips. He hadn’t been thinking about it, not directly, but he supposed Kylo could suss it out anyway if he wanted to…. “Do your job well and I won’t need to.”

This was feeling… comfortable. Hux did not like feeling comfortable. Comfort led to complacency led to poor decisions. He rolled off Ren and onto his back. “I said I wasn’t finished with you yet.” He idly cupped himself, began to stroke his way hard again. Kylo sighed dramatically. “Very well.” He rolled over, on top of Hux, and cupped Hux’s cheek as he pressed down into a long kiss. “But only because it will make you shut up.”

Hux snorted. “Not even you have that power, Re-enn-ahhh” he moaned as Kylo’s mouth found his nipple and the knight’s big hand wrapped about his cock. He didn’t even need to look to know Kylo was smirking. “That a challenge, general?” He kissed lower, following the curve of Hux’s muscles past his belly button. Hux made a strangled noise as Kylo’s indecently beautiful mouth found him, licked him, sucked him. “Kriff, Ren, yes, don’t stop…” Even as Ren’s mouth worked, his hands found the back of Hux’s thighs, pushed them up so he could… 

Hux almost screamed. His remaining self-control reduced it to a disconcertingly high-pitched yelp. Kylo had pressed two fingers right in, hooked them and pressed directly against Hux’s center. Hux thought he might black out, which was a feat considering he was quite literally already blacked out. Everything inside him shook. He clenched his fists and pressed against the floor, desperate to let some of the tension out. 

The orgasm Ren pulled from him was a thunderous tidal wave. He shouted obscenities he didn’t remember learning in languages he would swear he had never heard, all mixed with Ren’s name. When he finally came down from the high of it he simply panted. Ren rose, licking his lips, and came around to sit behind Hux, pulling Hux into his lap. “Apology accepted,” Hux murmured. Ren let out a breathy snort. 

“I hope you enjoyed it,” Ren murmured, brushing Hux’s hair from his brow. Hux’s brow furrowed. Was he playing at being nice again? No. Wrong tone. “Because you were getting a bit above your station. I’ll let this pass, on account of your injury, but as soon as you are healed up… I’m going to have to remind you who serves whom around here.” 

He vanished, leaving Hux to fall to his own illusory floor. “Ren?” The sound echoed in the throne room of his own mind. 

Silence.

“Ren?”

_Kriff._


	5. Who Commands Who

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hux recovers from previous injuries, but both he and Kylo soon find themselves in unexpected battles that lead to, if not exactly _feelings_ , perhaps a new kind of attachment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The narrator switches at every *** except during the smut, where it switches far more frequently, but it should be clear who's mind your in at the time.

The first time Hux awoke it was dark. He could hear the medical wing staff beyond the door- his rank must have gained him a private room- but no droids or doctors lingered. He sighed. Everything was foggy. His arm didn’t precisely _hurt_ , per se, but it felt… artificially numb. He tried to peer down at it and could just make out the patch of black nanosealant patching whatever was left of the hole, and a tight, firm wrap that kept his bad arm affixed across his waist. The nanosealant would force his skin and the other flesh beneath to expedite its healing, for which he was grateful. He’d already been away from the bridge for too long. 

The entire thing itched terribly, though. His arm was sweating in the wrap, and despite the likely need to continue to keep his arm extremely still, he was almost desperate to have someone at least wash it. And he was cold, and clammy, and hungry. And possibly ready to have a good whinge in his own head about all of those things. He reached a shaky hand toward the button that would summon a nurse only to find his wrist intercepted by a gloved, hand. “You shouldn’t be awake yet.”

“Ren.” Hux tried to yank his wrist out of the Supreme Leader’s grasp, but found he didn’t have the strength. A grumble escaped him as Ren brought Hux’s hand over his non-wounded side and pressed it down with one of his own. “Why are you here?”

“Keeping a watchful eye. Also,” Ren ran his fingers over Hux’s lips, drawing the lower one down and watching it bounce back into place, “I was curious how quickly your recovery was going.”

“Your concern is noted, I’m sure.”

Ren leaned close, the heat of his breath brushing along Hux’s cheek. “I have things in mind that require you hale and hearty.” Hux blushed involuntarily, the damnable curse of pale skin. “In fact, I was thinking of one of them for right here.” His finger ran back across Hux’s lower lip, tracing just far enough in for the leather to catch the moisture of Hux’s mouth. “But I don’t think you’re well enough.”

“I’m fine. I just need a bath.”

“You need more rest. Your sedatives wore off early.”

“Good. I’ll have more time to get work done.” Hux shimmied his hand out from under Ren’s and tried to brace himself on his good arm so he could sit up, but it was awkward without his other arm to help.

“Not in this state.” Ren gently pushed him back down. “Rest.”

Hux was beginning to get annoyed. “I’ve had quite enough of rest, just let me-”

“Sleep.” Hux hadn’t even seen Ren’s hand move, but suddenly he felt his eyes closing, and he was lost again to the dark.

***

Kylo ran a hand through his hair as he left the medical wing. He wasn’t sure why he had gone. Okay, that was partially a lie- he had been contemplating the merits of waking Hux from his slumber by fucking his mouth deep enough to get Hux to choke on it, but that hadn’t been the entire reason. He was… concerned. Concern was a suitable feeling for a commanding officer, he told himself. One had to be cognizant of their crew’s needs. There was nothing wrong with that. Concern did not have to be weak, simpering affection. It was just itself. Perfectly natural.

“Sir?” Mitaka was waiting for him outside the throne room. He wasn’t sure why the bridge always sent him Mitaka. The man was perpetually a tick away from a complete nervous breakdown.

“Lieutenant. What do you have for me?” 

“It’s about the ship, sir. The _Millenium Falcon_. We believe we know where it is.”

Kylo felt his muscles tense. He breathed, his fingers finding the hilt of his lightsaber where it hung from his felt and running over the cold metal. “Where?” 

***

When Hux awoke the second time in the med bay he wasn’t sure if he was disappointed or relieved that it was Phasma who waited to greet him instead of Ren. The doctors had given him orders to lay off using his arm as much as possible for two weeks while his new nerve endings settled in. They’d had to rebuild some, along with the associated tissues, but Hux apparently took it well and the procedure only left a faint smattering of scar tissue like a pale supernova between his shoulder and chest. “General,” her deep artificial rumble came from behind him as he inspected the scar in a mirror. 

“Captain Phasma. Report.”

“The Resistance faction responsible for the attempt at our rally has been extinguished.”

“Good. And the bridge?”

“Captain Peavey was recalled from overseeing repairs to the Supremacy and personally covered the majority, rotating in his sleep cycle with Mitaka.” Hux grimaced. Peavey was a good and highly efficient second, but he did not actually enjoy working with the man, primarily because he knew perfectly well Peavey thought Hux had only attained his position due to his father’s influence. “Very well. What else?”

“There was a credible sighting of the Resistance’s de facto… flagship,” she said the last with scornful derision.

“The _Falcon_. Where?”

“Bespin.” Hux pursed his lips and picked up his uniform shirt, starting the process of getting fully ready to return to duty. The First Order had a watchful eye on Bespin for years due to Baron Calrissian’s irksome presence. “Soon after a vessel identified as the governor’s pleasure yacht departed for Hapes.” Hapes. That was intriguing. 

“Hapes has long remained neutral.”

“Perhaps someone is offering them incentive to choose a side.” 

He cinched his belt over his jacket. The prospect of Hapes allying with the Resistance was a concerning one. Hapes was flush in credit and maintained their own standing military fleet, which was the primary reason neither the Empire nor the Order nor the Republic bothered to try to force them in line. If anyone could provide the Resistance with a sudden influx of ships, they would be the best bet. If only Starkiller had not been destroyed this would prove an extremely easy problem to solve. “Has our Supreme Leader ordered any actions?”

“He deployed Special Forces to Bespin to confirm sightings of the _Falcon_. Or the girl. He went with them to see to her personally.” Hux frowned, pulling his general’s hat on and draping his greatcloak over his arm. Of course, the girl. Ren’s fixation would get them all killed one of these days. 

He walked out of the medical bay to several salutes, keeping his posture firm and strong until he reached the corridor. Then he slowed. His limbs had grown complacent on him. Even walking felt like a chore. Phasma followed, keeping a pace behind him whatever speed he walked at. “Has he left any orders regarding the _Finalizer?_ ”

“No.”

“Good.” Hux turned toward the bridge. “I want us resupplied as quickly as possible. Let’s pay a visit to Hapes.”

“Yes, general.”

***

Kylo Ren watched the landing pad on Bespin through thermal binoculars from their concealed position, hovering in the clouds. They had been at it for days, searching the city from all angles until they found the pad the _Falcon_ sat on, somehow resplendent in its sheer determination not to fall apart anytime the engines were turned on. But they hadn’t been able to locate its crew. The humans all blended together within the city, of course, but the Wookie should stand out. _And Rey he should be able to feel_. It was quiet. He didn’t like it. “I have a bad feeling about this,” he muttered, grimacing when he heard his father’s voice in his own. 

“There’s no sign of them yet, sir,” the Special Forces operative manning the consoles of the TIE/sf to his left chirped through her modulator. 

Ren exhaled through his nose. Something was wrong. He stretched a hand toward the city, _reached_ out with the Force….

His eyes snapped open, his own hand already booting up his ship’s shields before the words exited his mouth. “Get your shields up!”

“They’ll see us on scans-” the operative to his right began to protest.

“Now!”

One of them tapped the button just as the air around their ships erupted, the highly volatile Tibanna gas bursting in rolling waves of destruction. The right-hand TIE was incinerated immediately, only the left had gotten her shields up in time. Kylo braced himself against the wall. A trap. He should have known. Which meant that the Baron's ship so obviously departing for Hapes… He clicked the comm and began to bank up. “We need to return to the _Finalizer_ immediately.” 

“Shouldn’t we return fire?” That was the gunner on the remaining TIE/sf, a deeper masculine tone. Kylo hadn’t bothered learning any of their names.

Kylo snarled. “Two missiles to the port. Drop the rest on their reactor stalks. They’ll be cleaning that up for months.” 

“Yes sir.” They pulled the fighters out of the incendiary gas and fired. Kylo watched as they flew on while the shuttle pulled into orbit. “Sir. The _Finalizer_ is already en route to Hapes.”

He was gripping the hilt of his saber hard. Anywhere else he would have smashed something to stave off the fury, but the fighter was not strong enough to take it. He closed his eyes and tried to breathe. “Plot a course. Now.”

***

Hux decreed that Phasma should be the lead in reaching out to Hapes, seeing as they were a matriarchy. He thought the presence of a woman might make them slightly more inclined to talk. Unamo would go as her second, for similar reasons, and Mitaka, because he was the sort of tepidly handsome arm candy he understood Hapan women enjoyed while remaining hilariously unthreatening. Yet all three could shoot their way out if they had to, and as attendant guards a hand-selected group of Phasma’s best stormtroopers would accompany them. 

They brought the destroyer to the outside of the system since most planetary governments were inclined to find a star destroyer dropping out of hyperspace directly on top of them something of a threat. Hux was personally on the com when the queen’s representative responded. “Send your people. We’ll be waiting.” He smiled thinly. If he could get an alliance out of Hapes he would get just as much praise as when Starkiller was completed. More, perhaps. But this was only the first step. The Hapans were a prickly group, and Hux did not expect their queen to roll over after a single meeting. 

They were still loading up the shuttle when Hux heard his radar officer inhale sharply. “Report,” he snapped in her direction.

“Three Star Cruiser sized vessels just dropped out of hyperspace, sir. I don’t recognize the class, but… they’re deploying X-Wings.”

A lengthy and obscene series of expletives crossed Hux’s mind. “Deploy TIEs. Hold the shuttle. And get our shields up. Any of them come in range, shoot them.”

“Yes, sir.” The bridge was electric as all the positions prepared for the engagement. Hux ran the numbers in his head. Star Cruisers were smaller than destroyers and they old ones didn’t stand a chance in a direct fight, but if these were newly made… they might have weapon systems to match the _Finalizer_. “How long until they’re within range of our missiles?”

“Two minutes.”

“Good. Get them ready.” Hux began to count down to himself. He was at sixty-two when the alarm for incoming missiles went off. “All cannons, eliminate those missiles!” He felt the impact as the ones that got through struck levels away. “Damage?”

“Minimal, but they’re targeting our shield generators and the hyperdrive. If there’s a direct hit we’ll be sitting ducks, sir.” Hux chewed the inside of his lip. The Resistance weapons were more advanced. New ships. Had to be. Tactically, he could either stay, fight, and doom them all to fiery glory, or order a retreat. Unless there was another destroyer close enough to assist them, they were probably royally screwed either way. He drew a breath and prepared to order to the attack.

“Sir,” the radar operator perked up suddenly, “the Supreme Leader’s TIE is inbound.”

“He’s opened a channel,” the comm officer continued.

“Patch him through.” Hux cleared his throat. “Sir, we-”

“General. The Resistance fleet is outmatching you. Prepare to withdraw.”

Hux blinked. “Yes, Supreme Leader.” His eyes flicked toward navigation. “Evasive maneuvers and plot us a course out of here. Order the TIEs to withdraw only at the last second, they have to buy us time to make the turn.”

“I will assist them,” Kylo’s voice rumbled out of the comm, then a low click indicated he had cut the line. Hux glared at the comm. Kylo Ren was their Supreme Leader, he shouldn’t be putting himself at risk like that. _Don’t you want his position, though?_ A low voice inside him laughed. _Haven’t you dreamed of the day he would do something idiotic and blow that stupid Silencer up? You stupid, soft man_. Hux frowned. It was concern, only concern. Perfectly. Normal. Concern.

 

***

Kylo Ren’s TIE Silencer screamed through the void. He was wroth. The remaining TIE S/F at his side did her best to keep up with him, focusing on battering X-Wings off his tail. He regretted unloading his missile payload on Bespin, because it turned out he actually wanted to kill everyone here far, far more than those who pulled that stupid stunt. 

“Missile ports,” he said tersely into his comm.

“Affirmative.”

They spiralled in sync between dogfights, dodging toward one of the cruisers, which promptly opened fire on them until they banked in too close for it to hit. He had an irrational urge to rub this maneuver in and, when the thought flickered across his mind that he actually had seen this one before, he couldn’t resist opening a channel to the Resistance ship as they reached the first of the missile ports. “Tell Poe Dameron that General Hux sends his regards.” 

He blew apart the missile port easily and hissed with satisfaction as one of them erupted in the tube, ripping a column of fire down the side of the ship as the rest steadily caught. He chuckled to himself and closed the open line as it erupted with a litany of curses in his direction. The victorious feeling almost made him miss the twinge of warning from the Force. He hard banks into a spin, dodging an incoming missile before his ship even has time to ping it. His counterpart is not so lucky. The missile takes off half of one of her wing panels. Ren has to give it to her though, if she were a lesser pilot, it would have gone straight through her center chassis.

“I’m hit, sir,” her voice echoed in the comm, overly calm. He can hear the gunner cursing behind her. He’s heard it before. The pilots, more than anyone, know they’re expendable. Why else would regular TIEs fail to bother with shields. Or hyperdrives. Or life support. Somehow, this time, it feels suddenly wasteful. So much talent, bottled in a glass jar and thrown at a wall, fully expecting it to break. Hux had the same tone, when Kylo had ordered him to retreat. What a waste, if the general were to throw it all away on a battle they never had a chance of winning.

“Fall back.”

“Sir?” 

“I’ll cover you. Withdraw to the _Finalizer_. They’re almost done with the turn.” 

The comm crackles static for a beat. “Yes, Supreme Leader.” She spins on the thruster of her good wing, twisting for home. Kylo raises his eyes to the offending X-Wing and smiles as he begins to fire.

***

Hux has ordered a withdrawal to the lower reserve bridge, which is less of a target. His officers reconvene there with a fervent level of efficiency. “Where’s our countdown?”

“Two minutes out, sir.” 

“Recall the TIEs. Any of them that don’t make it will be stranded, so do remind them to hurry.” With the relay time- his word to the fighter bay to the squad comms, he imagines they will have 90 seconds. On full thrusters, they should make it. He purses his lips and clenches the rail as another bombardment sneaks a few stray missiles past their shields. Which have been failing. “Direct all shields to the rear. We don’t need them putting one up our engines just before we jump.” 

“Yes, sir.”

He breathes in time with the count. The question now is less whether they’ll be able to trigger their hyperdrive, but whether the ship will be intact enough by the time they go to actually make the jump. He taps a button on his console and opens a private channel to Ren, keeping the Supreme Leader’s voice quietly next to his own ear. “One hundred seconds, sir.”

“I can make the jump on my own, general.”

“I would prefer it if you went with us, sir.” Hux wills his mouth to stop moving but somehow it disobeys him. “I won’t leave you behind.”

Ren breathes into the comm. Hux curses whatever weakness has come over him. Of _course_ he should leave Ren behind, he should condemn him and all the other pilots to the void and get his ship out and _be_ Supreme Leader himself. That’s what he wants. Isn’t it?

“I’m on my way.”

***

The _Finalizer_ shudders in hyperspace, but she does not break. Ren swings out of his cockpit, drops down to the floor of the fighter bay. The pilot he flew with is staring at him, out of the corner of his eye, the gunner behind her gesticulating animatedly to a group of mechanics, narrating the fight. He glances her way and she gives him a nod. Not fear. Respect. He nods back. 

On the catwalk above him, Hux skids out of a run and into a very nonchalant stroll, like he’s just overlooking the lot of them. Ren arches a brow and stares at him until Hux finishes pretending that he hadn’t just been looking for Ren and makes eye contact with him. Kylo pointedly nods toward the lift and stalks that way.

Hux slips into the lift. They stand shoulder to shoulder, neither quite looking at each other, studying the walls. Ren waits for Hux to inhale the beginning of one of his biting remarks. “Took your time-” is all he gets out before Ren has him hoisted by the waist and pinned to the wall. He looks pleasingly startled. Ren leans in, his lips brushing Hux’s ear.

“General. Did you think I would let you go so easily when I still have to remind you _whom you serve_?” Hux’s breath catches into a breathy whimper that goes straight to Kylo’s cock. Kylo lashes his tongue out, stroking Hux’s throat. He drops him just before the lift slides open, letting the general drop back to his feet and sort out his own blushing fluster. Kylo grins to himself and strides toward his quarters as Hux just barely escapes the lift’s closing door in time to follow.

The doors to his quarters open and Kylo enters, setting his blaster on the table, gloves beside it. When he hears the door close, he turns to face Hux, smiling ferally.

Hux’s heart is racing. He’s seen this look on Kylo before and it inspires such need that he just runs at him, grasping Kylo’s face and pressing their mouths together, kissing him desperately. 

Kylo undoes Hux’s jacket, his large hands somehow dextrous in their pursuits. Hux slides his own hands lower, undoing Kylo’s belt. When Hux is unlaced above the belt and Kylo under it, Ren picks him up and launches him to the bed. Hux splays across it, running his tongue over his lips. “You’re eager.”

“You’re one to talk.” Kylo yanks his shirt over his head and marches to the bed, kicking off his boots on the way. He climbs over Hux and straddles him, kissing his way up the line of flesh revealed by his open jacket and sliding his undershirt farther and farther up. Hux moans appreciatively, more when Kylo runs his hand up Hux’s thigh and over his suddenly extremely hard dick. Kylo climbs up farther and slides his hands to Hux’s wrists, dragging them over the ginger’s head and pinning them with one hand. He rises to his knees and draws out his cock, tracing it over Hux’s lips. “Now. Who do you serve?”

He feels Hux’s control fray. His need is palpable. But he can’t resist a jab. “The First Order,” Hux says impishly, arching a brow at Kylo. 

Kylo levels a glance at Hux. “Insolence is a terrible habit, general.” He clasps Hux’s jaw with his free hand, pulling his mouth into a sufficiently wide hole. “Best you keep from speaking for a bit.” He slips his cock in, savoring it as Hux struggles to try and make it more comfortable for himself. Ren goes slowly at first, pressing further and further in and watching Hux try not to choke, his eyes watering. When Kylo starts to thrust in earnest, Hux really begins to struggle, but he can’t get his wrists free from the pin and his legs just kick wildly behind Ren, knees bouncing harmlessly off his back until Kylo finally lets him go, strands of saliva still connecting them even after Ren is out.

Hux struggles to catch his breath, his face is wet and he’s not sure what fluids have landed where. It doesn’t matter. Ren is yanking his boots off, then his trousers and Hux finds himself wrapping his legs around Kylo’s waist, the smooth soft skin there driving him mad. “Kylo…”

“Going to beg already? I thought you had more steel than that, General.” Ren takes off his own trousers, and Hux recovers himself enough to get his jacket off.

“I don’t beg.”

“You will.” 

Hux meets Ren’s gaze evenly, the pair of them wild krayt dragons each willing to attack first. They fly at each other in unison, Hux dragging his teeth along Kylo’s neck as the larger man pushes him down, Ren’s hands sliding over his ass, spreading it while Hux _marked_ everything he could get his mouth on with little bruises and dragged his nails across Kylo’s back, carving slashing patterns of red as he grinds hard against the knight. Ren kisses his throat, under his chin, forcing his head to tilt up and away from the targets of his teeth. “Feral, you,” Ren breathes. Hux feels a slick hand between his legs- Ren’s ability to Force-pull lube from anywhere really was ridiculous- and cannot quiet a yelp as Ren slides two fingers in. “Come undone for me, Armitage,” Kylo purrs at him.  
Watching Hux resist him is arousing. His face is a wealth of expression, eyes half-lidded, mouth open just far enough to emit those enticing whimpers of pleasure Kylo thrives on. He slides in a third finger. Hux’s cock is throbbing hard against his abs, and Kylo debates withdrawing there, letting him suffer.

But that isn’t the sort of suffering he had in mind for Hux. Not today, anyway. He presses his fingers deep, hooks them carefully, and gauges by how tightly Armitage clings to his shoulders how close he is. “Ready to beg yet?” Armitage gasps, then bites his lower lip and shakes his head. “Suit yourself.” Kylo memorizes his face as he cums across both their bellies, the blush spreading over his cheeks, even down his throat. He wants to see how it compares. 

Hux eyes him with a trace of smirking victory. “See?” He pants, falling back to the bed, content, eyes closed. “No begging.”

Kylo counts to five in his head, then summons his wide leather belt to his hand. “I didn’t say you were done yet.”

Hux opens one eye. “Hm?”

Kylo smiles and climbs over Hux, gently taking up his arms and binding them to the belt, then the belt to the bed. With another, unseen hand lent by the Force, he slides another projected finger back into Hux and presses down. Hux arches involuntarily, his smirk vanishing into a nervous half-smile under wide eyes. “Kylo,” he chokes out, “I don’t think-”

“I was thinking you had at least one more. Maybe two. Let’s try for two, shall we? You were so demanding about getting your _turn_ last time.” 

Hux tests his weight against the belt, but it doesn’t give. “Kylo, really, I’m not sure-” His voice disappears into a yelp as Kylo’s real hand cups his overly sensitive sack. 

“Come now, general. I thought you didn’t beg.” Kylo slides back down and skims his mouth over Hux’s cock. It twitches in response, still recovering from its last spending, but unable to resist the call to alertness from so many directions at once. Kylo is patient with it, his eyes on Hux’s face, the little struggles of every muscles in his body to cope with the strain. His other hand slides to his own cock, finding the lube and ensuring he is slick.

Hux is _whimpering_ , much to his personal shame. Ren almost had him convinced he had turned over a new leaf, but no, and Hux was absolutely sure he wanted to jettison him from an airlock into the nearest sun. It was that or never, ever stop feeling _this_ , and there was no part of him willing to admit that would be an excellent idea. If he could formulate words he would make some scathing comment about Ren’s propensity for tying him up meaning that he still saw Hux as a threat, but any sound he tried to make just turned into a moan and the look Kylo gave him when he did was… torture? Bliss? Both?

He’s fully hard again, and Kylo withdraws his Force-faked fingers. Hux finds he cannot accept their absences and thrusts down, fucking himself along Kylo’s tongue, looking for any salvation. Ren looks up at him. “Are you going to beg yet?” _Kriff. No. Yes, always, forever._ He shudders and Ren’s face is over his, their lips brushing against each other. “Beg.”

“Please.”

It slips out of him before he can stop it, but kriff, it’s true, and then he can’t stop. “Fuck me, Kylo, please, please fuck me, I’ll do anything-” He’s still pleading when Ren hoists up his legs. Even the touch of Ren’s cock against his entrance is almost too much to bear. 

Rem smiles to himself. Hux is perfect like this. Absolutely exquisite. Ren watches him break only a few thrusts in, he comes apart screaming as his dick spills once more. Kylo keeps going, not gently either, even after, as Hux lays more limply, taking his own pleasure from how ruined his general looks, how spent. He cums himself with his hands dug into Hux’s thighs, where there will likely be fingerprint sized bruises the next day. Hux makes a pained moan when he withdraws. Ren grins as he catches his own breath. “Sure you don’t want a third?”

“I will… turn off the air... to your quarters… while you are sleeping… you sadist.”

“Suit yourself.” Kylo climbs up beside him and rests on his elbows while he undoes the belt holding Hux’s wrists. They fall to the bed and Hux doesn’t bother to move them. Kylo flicks a strand of ginger hair from his brow. Hux glances over at him. Kylo arches a brow. “Yes?”

Hux looks away. “What makes this work for you?”

Kylo tilts his head, rolling onto one side and propping his head on his hand. “What do you mean?”

“Everyone I’ve known pursues _up_. Up in power, up in status, up in beauty. Yet you went after me.”

“You think you’re a step down?” Kylo rolls over top of him, his face hovering inches above Hux’s, then leans down and kisses Hux softly.

“Armitage. You fuel me.”

 

*** Epilogue ***

Phasma looks over her datapad. The janitorial maintenance team had, over the slow course of several cycles, discretely installed sound-dampening materials into the walls surrounding both General Hux and Supreme Leader Ren’s quarters. She had indicated the reasons were to do with sonic disturbances resulting from ventilation damage during prior skirmishes with the Resistance. Anyone who suspected otherwise was wise enough not to make mention of it, and she had personally adjusted a few corridor cameras so they no longer had a direct view of either man’s door. In the meantime, both of her superiors had an additional layer of protection against gossip, and she had stealthily negotiated- via a mild degree of hacking- both of their daily planners until they were on synchronized sleep cycles to boot. 

It may not have been regulation, but the concept wasn’t bad. Ren hadn’t destroyed a console or any of the ships vital systems in some time, not to mention the reduction in both troopers and officers sent to the medical wing with choking-related ailments. She was not entirely sure what Hux did to domesticate the wild knight (she had some ideas, but preferred not to think about them in specific terms), but whatever it was, it was working. And it was what they needed in a new Supreme Leader. Order. Not chaos. Respect from their own, fear from the rest. 

Besides that, it also opened up intriguing options for herself. Now, when the officers cannot find their Supreme Leader or their general, they come to her. “Captain,” Mitaka peers at her through the open door of her office in the Stormtrooper barracks.

“Lieutenant.”

“We’re receiving a transmission. Seems to be a Resistance distress beacon.”

“Ship or planet?”

“Ship.” 

She adjusts her cape and rises, striding toward the bridge. “Ready the cannons, Lieutenant. I’ll give the order.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First fic done! As I mentioned in earlier chapters, I originally intended this as a one-shot but ended up adding on to it in pure, unplanned, word-vomit style, with editing only for spelling. So I hope the end result is mostly coherent. 
> 
> I also want to mention that I know the tense changes- we're going to call that "an artistic choice to reflect immediacy of action" and not "the author was way too lazy to go fix that." 
> 
> Any and all comments welcome!


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